Paving costs have now escalated to the point the city is adding $200,000 to its original $500,000 budget to pave the stretch of Lakelse Ave. from Apsley to the old Skeena Bridge.
in the hope the work can be done before winter fully sets in.
New asphalt for a smoother driving surface along the one-kilometre section of Lakelse will complement the multi-use separated pathway completed in early summer so that surface water will run along the curb and gutter stormwater works that were part of the pathway construction.
The challenge is that while an existing top layer of asphalt was removed in mid-September to reveal a rough foundation subsurface, a process called “milling,” a new top layer could not be laid down shortly after as first anticipated.
Not paving this year runs the risk of an even higher cost next year, city engineering and public works director Ben Reinbolt told council Oct. 23 in asking for a budget increase. And not paving means motorists will continue to drive on a rough surface until next spring when the project can be completed.
Problems began when delays in finishing the multi-use pathway pushed the plan for new asphalt on Lakelse until this fall.
Accordingly, the paving contract was put out to tender at the same time as city staffers worked to line up a company to remove the existing top layer. There are no local companies who do the milling but staffers found an out-of-town company on its way to a job at the LNG Canada site in Kitimat.
“So we took advantage of the contractor coming through town as they were going to LNG Canada and saved mobilization costs. I don’t know the exact amount but it was in the $10,000 to $15,000 range of savings,” said Reinbolt.
But there were no bidders to pave Lakelse, leaving staffers to work with the one local paving contractor large enough to handle the job to undertake it before winter.
Reinbolt pointed out that the $500,000 budget was set a year ago but since that time, paving rates increased by 22 per cent.
The new price of $700,000 includes a 10 per cent bump to pay for additional labour and equipment so that asphalt can be fully laid and packed in colder weather.
Because a contract was not tendered, there is also no contractual obligation for a contractor to complete the job this year, Reinbolt added.
He did say that should council decide not to pave this year, the city would work with a local smaller contractor to fill in the worst sections of the rough driving surface. It’s work that would have to be done anyway to prepare the surface for a top layer, Reinbolt added.
Councillor Dave Gordon noted that the 10 per cent cold weather premium cost would have to be balanced against the chance that next year’s paving rate increase would be less.
He called that an “outside chance.”
In the end, council voted to increase the budget by $200,000. It’s money that will come from the northern capital and planning grant provided to the city several years ago.
The $200,000 was part of the $500,000 first allocated to taking down the canopy on the 4600 Block of Lakelse Ave. but that project is not costing as much as first thought.
Even with the increased budget, paving this year will depend upon the weather and contractor availability, said Reinbolt. He estimated the work would take three days.